There’s something very ‘at home’ for me at the residence of the Ambassador of Brazil. And it goes back such a long way to when I lived next door as a new kid on the block in the then Fairfax House on Mugga Way. I have checked the perimeter on occasions to find the little ditch where the water drained away and we built bridges.

There were no fences just pines and gums then and we roamed free. Those freedoms are what kids today need to experience, when you could be out until the dinner pot banging call and doing a Huckleberry Finn like adventure climbing Mount Ainslie and Black Mountain – neither of which are really mountains – was a much anticipated adventure.

I’ve probably met quite a few ambassadors scampering around that perimeter and coming back to the house for any official occasion always brings back memories, as it did for the farewell of the outgoing Ambassador Rubem Correa Barbosa and his wife Lenise who are now posted to Indonesia. The house has been here for quite a while and a quick zip in and out by Gareth Evans, stopping for a photo op next to the 50 year plaque he unveiled in 1995 to acknowledge all those years of diplomatic relations is one among many receptions I’ve remembered.

As well and separately have been the concerts and Brazilian entertainment at the Yarralumla Embassy offices with choro serenades from mandolin maestro Hamilton de Holanda and samba sounds from Cicilia Kemezys, Reinaldo Portillo-Castro and Gilmar Munor such a pleasure. Now I can add my own Ipanema experience to the Brazilian memory bank of a samba songbook with my stroll along that beach.

Rubem and Lenise will be back, they love the country and Aboriginal art has been added to their personal eclectic collection. I’ve always enjoyed their company and wish them well.